Running a cigarette and tobacco store can be a tightrope walk, balancing profits with regulations. If you’re trying to accomplish all of this with a standard retail point of sale (POS) system, you’ll be inefficient at best and noncompliant at worst.
The solution? A specialized POS system for cigarette and tobacco stores. These solutions are designed to streamline age verification and compliance reporting, simplify regulatory requirements, and reduce inventory shrinkage. But how can you find the right POS system for your shop?
This guide outlines the five essential features every tobacco retailer should demand in a POS system, followed by a curated list of the top providers.
POS System for Cigarette and Tobacco Stores: Essential Features
If you’re looking for a POS system for cigarette and tobacco stores, you’re not looking for a run-of-the-mill point of sale solution. Tobacco retailers face unique regulatory and inventory challenges, and you need a POS solution with the features to match.
Here’s a simple checklist of the essential features every smoke shop needs from their POS system:
Age Verification & Compliance Tools
- Integrated ID scanning with forgery detection
- Automated age calculation with visual warning flags
- Compliance tracking for FDA regulations
- PACT Act reporting capabilities
- Transaction records for regulatory inspections
Specialized Inventory Management
- Serialized tracking for premium cigars
- Unit/box/carton conversion tools
- Automatic reorder alerts based on minimum stock levels
Tax Calculation & Reporting
- Automated calculation of complex tobacco excise taxes
- Multi-jurisdictional tax rate management
- Audit-ready reporting for state and federal requirements
Customer Relationship Management (CRM)
- Purchase history tracking
- Loyalty programs
- Compliant marketing capabilities
Security & Access Controls
- Employee-specific permission settings
- Cash drawer management features
- Transaction auditing tools
- Security features to prevent internal theft
- Shift management with accountability tracking
Investing in a tobacco-specific POS system is the first step to running a compliant, profitable smoke shop. With the right solution in place, you can improve customer satisfaction while protecting your business from costly violations.
With these insights in mind, let’s examine our list of the top six POS systems for cigarette and tobacco stores.
1. Cigars POS
Best for: Independent tobacco and cigar shop owners
Cigars POS offers a specialized point of sale system designed for tobacco retailers. As a result, you won’t need to adapt a generic solution to your needs — you can just plug and play with a software solution built for businesses like yours. This cloud-based solution combines regulatory compliance tools with tobacco-specific inventory management to streamline operations and give customers the best experience possible.
Key features:
- Membership tier management: Create custom membership programs with varying price points, benefits, and privileges to build customer loyalty.
- Carton-pack inventory control: Manage inventory at multiple unit levels with automatic conversions and tobacco-specific categorization.
- Built-in age verification: Protect your business with integrated ID scanning that validates customer age in seconds.
- Open tab functionality: Allow customers to add purchases throughout their visit, perfect for cigar lounges where they may stay for hours.
- Scan data reporting: Produce manufacturer rebate reports and maintain competitive pricing through automated tracking.
Customer testimonial:
"We have membership tiers, and Cigars POS allowed me to customize them all. I was able to customize our customer database because we have a different system. You pay to be a member and you get perks. We have different tiers, and the system allowed me to customize all of that."
— Keith Brick, Manager of F&M Cigars
2. POSIM
Best for: Multichannel businesses across multiple industries
POSIM offers a point of sale and inventory management solution designed to handle complex inventory across multiple channels. Their highly customizable platform is designed to give retailers complete control over their operations with extensive features backed by U.S.-based support.
Key features:
- Advanced inventory management: Manage variations (colors, sizes, styles), bulk item uploads, and automated reordering capabilities with the style matrix.
- Multichannel integration: Sync in-store and online sales channels seamlessly with real-time inventory updates.
- Customizable customer database: Tracking customer purchase history and leverage the MailChimp integration for targeted marketing.
- Data-driven reporting: Get actionable insights into inventory performance with granular analytics, helping you make informed business decisions.
Related Read: 3 Data Inventory Tools for Independent Retailers
Customer testimonial:
"The team at POSIM has gone above and beyond to assist us! Our integrated e-commerce site has drastically reduced our redundancy and has made my team so much more productive! And recurring billing with 'block of the month' program saves us, literally hours, compared to our old process."
— Deb Luttrell, Stitchin' Heaven
3. Lightspeed Retail
Best for: Multilocation vape and tobacco retailers
Lightspeed Retail offers a comprehensive cloud-based POS and payments platform that unifies in-store and online operations. With over 165,000 businesses worldwide using their system, Lightspeed helps businesses streamline inventory management, improve customer relationships, and maintain compliance on age-restricted items.
Key features:
- Unified commerce platform: Integrate in-store POS, e-commerce, and inventory management in one system with real-time synchronization.
- Advanced compliance tools: Use built-in RACS compliance and age verification integrations to confidently sell regulated products.
- Integrated payments: Process all major cards and digital wallets with transparent pricing, full PCI compliance, and end-to-end encryption.
Customer testimonial:
“I absolutely love the basic reporting Lightspeed offers. Lightspeed POS is pretty straightforward once you get the hang of it. It allows discounts and customer loyalty accounts to be easily integrated. Support chat is always top-notch.”
— Brittany B., Small Business Owner
4. Shift4
Best for: Restaurants or cigar lounges looking to serve food
Shift4 offers an enterprise-grade, cloud-native POS platform built to be flexible and meet individual business’ needs. With their open API architecture, Shift4 empowers multilocation businesses to create a customized tech stack that can grow as their business does.
Key features:
- Open API: Take advantage of extensive customization options and integration capabilities to build a tailored technology ecosystem.
- Advanced inventory management: Get automated stock alerts, purchase order generation, and multichannel inventory synchronization with detailed categorization options.
- Mobile management: Manage operations from anywhere while increasing staff efficiency and enhancing customer experiences.
- Comprehensive analytics: Gain data-driven insights across all aspects of operations to optimize performance and profitability.
Customer testimonial:
“Allows for real-time electronic payment authorization and reporting. It is easy to control and a very flexible system which is a wonderful feature. I love the web-based capabilities which are nice to be able to access data from an alternate location (home office). So far it is a very secure network which is always important when handling so much personal information of our customers. The reports available are easy to use, easy to read, and print well. The process is very fast / the program works quickly.”
— Kristen S., Project Manager
5. NCR Counterpoint
Best for: Established retailers in a specific niche (e.g. specialty cigars)
NCR Counterpoint’s retail management system integrates front-end POS operations with back office functions. With over 30 years of industry experience, their solution provides a centralized database that synchronizes in-store, online, and mobile sales channels. The platform is fully customizable, allowing users to make the solution work with their business’ needs.
Key features:
- Centralized inventory management: Track detailed product attributes, including sizes, colors, and styles, across all sales channels from a single database.
- Mobile POS: Sell anywhere using iOS devices with both online and offline capabilities, bringing service directly to customers.
- Customizable interface: Adapt the system to specific business requirements with extensive customization options.
- Customer relationship management: Track customer preferences and purchase history with robust CRM tools.
Customer testimonial:
"Zack, I owe you a drink! I will go through the docs and let you know if I have any problems. I LOVE CP COMMERCE! The integration between our in-store operations and online sales has transformed how we manage inventory and serve our customers."
— Ryan Corbin, Carter & Company LTD
Related Read: What's the Best Cigar Shop POS Software?
6. KORONA POS
Best for: Small to medium-sized retailers who need remote management capabilities
KORONA POS offers a cloud-based point of sale system designed to meet the unique needs of specialty retailers, including smoke shops. With a straightforward subscription model that includes automatic updates and round-the-clock support, KORONA POS combines inventory management with specialized features like age verification and cashier permission levels.
Key features:
- Age verification: Use ID scanning capabilities and mandatory age verification prompts to ensure compliance with regulations for tobacco and vape products.
- Cashier permission levels: Get granular control over employee access to system functions, reducing theft and unauthorized discounts.
- Cloud-based remote management: Access inventory and sales reports from anywhere with KORONA Studio software, perfect for managing multiple locations.
- Automated inventory management: Stock reorder notifications and automated ordering features to prevent stockouts of popular products.
Customer testimonial:
"KORONA POS makes inventory management such a breeze! The platform is easy to use/learn, and the customer support you get makes it worth every penny! I couldn't do my job without their support line, and the POS system gives my employees the knowledge to help customers quickly and efficiently!"
— Nessa, The Bakeree
The Best POS System for Cigarette and Tobacco Stores
The six POS systems for cigarette and tobacco stores explored in this post all offer different strengths and key features. No single solution is the right fit for every business. Instead, you need to consider the features that matter most to you and choose the solution with the strongest performance in those areas.
Cigars POS is a standout choice for independent smoke shops and cigar lounge owners. We built our solution specifically to meet the unique challenges of tobacco retail, from membership tier management to specialized inventory tracking and regulatory compliance.
In short, why adapt your business to fit a generic POS when you can implement one designed explicitly for your industry?
Ready to experience how Cigars POS can transform your tobacco retail business? Schedule a free demo today to discover the difference a specialized solution can make.
